IT Correspondent
Guwahati, Aug 29:
Expressing anguish over the increase of casualties among media persons to Covid-19 complications in different parts of the country, Journalists’ Forum Assam (JFA) appeals to every scribe to be cautious and careful in safeguarding themselves along with their
families while reporting from the ground.
Local media reports reveal that a veteran journalist of Maharashtra died recently fighting the novel corona virus infection. Ashok Churi, who edited Marathi weekly PalgharTimes, died at Palghar based hospital, who later tested positive for Covid-19. Similarly, a young photo journalist of Punjab named Jai Deep, who worked for a Patiala based newspaper, also died of Covid-19 related ailments.
Earlier, an Andhra Pradesh based television reporter Madhusudan Reddy succumbed to Covid-19 complications. He became the second media victim from Tirupati locality after video journalist M Parthasarathy died during medical interventions. Tamil Nadu television reporter
Ramanathan and Orissa journalists namely Simanchal Panda, K Ch Ratnam & Priyadarshi Patnaik also lost their battles against the virus.
New Delhi based scribe Tarun Sisodia killed himself undergoing treatment at All India Institute of Medical Sciences. The printer-publisher of AsomiyaKhabar (Rantu Das) died of heart-failure
at a Guwahati hospital, who later tested positive for Covid-19.
Chennai based news videographer E Velmurugan, Chandigarh based news presenter Davinder Pal Singh, Hyderabad based television scribe Manoj Kumar, Agra based print journalist Pankaj Kulashrestha and Kolkata based photojournalist Ronny Roy earlier died of Covid-19.
JFA president Rupam Barua and secretary Nava Thakuria in a statement also expressed annoyances that over one hundred Assam based media persons turned positive for the virus infection while working as corona-warriors. But shockingly, the worrisome development has not been reported by their news papers, news channels and digital platforms themselves properly, it added.
“Need not to remind that it is the duty and responsibility for newspapers, news channels, digital outlets to report correctly about the Covid-19 warriors and also the victims within the media
fraternity,” asserted the JFA statement adding that they would definitely continue playing an important role along with the practicing doctors, nurses, sanitation workers and police personnel
during the pandemic.
